Best at home program/machine for building muscle & toning?

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Reinventi0n
Reinventi0n Posts: 71 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
So, I have a lot a total of 55 pounds and have a little bit more to lose before I am at my ultimate weight loss goal. While I do some cardio exercise I think I am at a point where I need to start focusing on more strength training / muscle building exercises.

I know my best bet would probably be to start going to a gym because of the wide variety of equipment, however I am not sure I would be comfortable doing that. I have a bit of social anxiety and going to a place like a gym would be especially tough for me. It's definitely something I want to work towards doing in the future, I am just not sure if I am ready for that at this point.

I am looking to get some recommendations for some at home workout machines or programs that will allow me to get close to the same results I would get at a gym. The areas I would like to focus are my midsection (chest/abs) and my arms. I am a 23 year old male, 5'10 and 168 pounds.

Thanks in advance for any advice you may have!

Replies

  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
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    My suggestion would be free weights rather than a machine. You can use them for a bigger variety of exercises rather than having to do the same specific movements over and over. You can choose between dumbbells or barbell (or both if you have the budget.) If you go with dumbbells you would either get regular dumbbells or powerblock type dumbbells (kind of rectangular and you adjust them to change their weight) or handles plus plates. There are pluses and minuses to them all so you have to pick what's best for you. But bottom line, if I had to choose one set of equipment to purchase, it would be weights.
  • 70chevellegsp
    70chevellegsp Posts: 50 Member
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    I'm a bit older at 47 and have had a roomful of commercial freeweight equipment over the years. I still have some of it, but have shifted in a mildly different direction over the last 10 years. It consisted of a Power Rack/Lat-Low Row Machine, 3 in 1 bench, decline bench, preacher bench, roman chair, and various dumbells, Olympic bars, plates and accessory bars. Shoulder issues and not being comfortable lifting by myself (presses & squats) I did some research on machines. I quickly eliminated cable machines, as I never really got a good workout from them. I found leverage machines and bought the PowerTec Workbench. I can do all my presses on my own, although I still need my wife to pull the pin to do squats. Everything is compact and there are a ton of exercises you can do with this machine. It doesn't give you the same exact motion as free weights, as it moves in an arc, and there is no lateral movement, but it has worked very well for me for the past 10 years. I still have my roman chair, which I use for hyperextensions and dips, along with my EZ curl bar and dumbells. I got rid of my preacher bench a few years ago due to a torn distal biceps tendon, so I don't miss it at all! Anyway, there's no substitute for free weights, but I think Leverage systems have their place based on individual needs and goals and give great results. Good Luck!
  • colors_fade
    colors_fade Posts: 464 Member
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    Honestly? Go get the gym membership.
  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
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    You do not need a gym membership. There is nothing magical about weights at the gym that make them more effective than weights at home.
  • jfboomer
    jfboomer Posts: 79 Member
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    Not to take away from lifting, which I have done and love. I just thought i would throw this out there as a viable alternative:

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1428309-what-can-calisthenics-do-for-you-let-me-show-you

    And here is an incredible video:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mvJHw64fxgQ
  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
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    Good point! Bodyweight workouts, or calisthenics, or what I think of as old school gym class stuff, is great to work on at home. I lost the first 42 pounds running and doing bodyweight workouts (Nerd Fitness's beginner's bodyweight program and then Start Bodyweight's basic plan.) You can do amazing work with just your own body, or your body and very limited equipment.

    http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2009/12/09/beginner-body-weight-workout-burn-fat-build-muscle/

    http://www.startbodyweight.com/p/start-bodyweight-basic-routine.html

    jboomer, how did you get your link to hyperlink? I've never been able to do that on MFP.
  • natecooper75
    natecooper75 Posts: 72 Member
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    You sound like a good candidate for either Starting Strength or Stronglifts 5x5. Since you are in the beginning stages of lifting, you will get the best of both worlds in terms of strength and hypertrophy(muscle building) by using this program. The downside to this at this point is that is a high start up cost for working out at home. The equipment also takes up a decent chunk of space.

    You can't go wrong with bodyweight workouts to start the process. You can do a decent job of developing the areas you mentioned with bodyweight exercises. A few dumbbells will also open new doors for you in terms of exercise options.

    While I can't provide you a specific program or piece of equipment to purchase, I would like to say don't avoid training your legs. Don't fall into the trap of only doing upper body exercises. If you start to develop and significant muscle mass in your upper body without ever training legs, you may end up disappointed because you are misproportioned. Take that with a grain of salt.
  • DantonD
    DantonD Posts: 15 Member
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    Grab a power rack / squat rack, a bench, an olympic bar and some olympic plates. Most efficient use of money to get the best possible workout equipment.
  • whovian67
    whovian67 Posts: 608 Member
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    My suggestion would be free weights rather than a machine. You can use them for a bigger variety of exercises rather than having to do the same specific movements over and over. You can choose between dumbbells or barbell (or both if you have the budget.) If you go with dumbbells you would either get regular dumbbells or powerblock type dumbbells (kind of rectangular and you adjust them to change their weight) or handles plus plates. There are pluses and minuses to them all so you have to pick what's best for you. But bottom line, if I had to choose one set of equipment to purchase, it would be weights.

    Agree
  • contingencyplan
    contingencyplan Posts: 3,639 Member
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    A power rack is going to be the most efficient way to go, yes, but that assumes you have a lot of $$$ and the luxury of being able to afford to devote a whole room to turning into a home gym. I'm not gonna take the leap of assuming you have all that, so my suggestion would be a set of Powerblock dumbbells (the ones that go to 50 lbs--do NOT get any of the ones that come in lesser poundages as you WILL outgrow them) or a suspension trainer.
  • h7463
    h7463 Posts: 626 Member
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    I started out with a $250 home gym from Walmart (on sale), a pullup bar for the door frame, and a small selection of dumbbells. When I felt ready to lift heavier, I found that there is some safety in a gym membership, because training alone at home would have probably gotten me trapped under a barbell at the time. I joined the gym for a year, and it gave me the best ideas about what I really needed to continue at home.
    Besides, it saved a lot of money, too, because I knew what I wanted and didn't have to rely on other people's opinions in the matter. I'm still using the old home gym, but I added a barbell, several plates, a bunch of kettlebells, and I recently built my own squat rack.
    Really need an adjustable bench next.....

    Happy lifting!
  • jfboomer
    jfboomer Posts: 79 Member
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    Good point! Bodyweight workouts, or calisthenics, or what I think of as old school gym class stuff, is great to work on at home. I lost the first 42 pounds running and doing bodyweight workouts (Nerd Fitness's beginner's bodyweight program and then Start Bodyweight's basic plan.) You can do amazing work with just your own body, or your body and very limited equipment.

    http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2009/12/09/beginner-body-weight-workout-burn-fat-build-muscle/

    http://www.startbodyweight.com/p/start-bodyweight-basic-routine.html

    jboomer, how did you get your link to hyperlink? I've never been able to do that on MFP.

    Haven't a clue. Maybe hyperlinks are only possible with links within MFP?
    Thanks for those links!
  • contingencyplan
    contingencyplan Posts: 3,639 Member
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    Good point! Bodyweight workouts, or calisthenics, or what I think of as old school gym class stuff, is great to work on at home. I lost the first 42 pounds running and doing bodyweight workouts (Nerd Fitness's beginner's bodyweight program and then Start Bodyweight's basic plan.) You can do amazing work with just your own body, or your body and very limited equipment.

    http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2009/12/09/beginner-body-weight-workout-burn-fat-build-muscle/

    http://www.startbodyweight.com/p/start-bodyweight-basic-routine.html

    jboomer, how did you get your link to hyperlink? I've never been able to do that on MFP.

    Bodyweight workouts are great but you can't be completely "equipment free." You will, at the very least, need a pullup bar or suspension trainer. Many muscle groups in the upper body are only worked by resisted pulling movements. However, when you are completely equipment free, you only have the ability to do resisted pushing.
  • kenc1971
    kenc1971 Posts: 107 Member
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    Pull-up bar is a must for a home setup. Nothing puts you in your place quite as fast as trying to crank out some pull-ups. My home gym consists of a flat bench, a wide variety of dumbbells, an Iron Gym pull-up bar that I got cheap at Target (I think), a folding chair, and a yoga mat. My programs tend to be things in the Beachbody family, so the equipment carries over pretty nicely from one to another.

    Most dumbbells run in the dollar per pound range, I don't know what something like Power Blocks can be purchased for, though. They may be cheaper, depending on the range. I had some spin-lock dumbbells to begin with, and went to solids because it was tedious to keep changing the weight up. I bought an A frame tree for them as well, now it's nice and neat when I'm not working out.

    Remember: The best at home program is the one you stick with consistently!

    Oh, and don't skip leg workouts. Your biggest muscles are in the legs/glutes, so there's some good burn to be had there. You should work the whole body anyway for stability/balance.
  • rybo
    rybo Posts: 5,424 Member
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    Like some have said, don't discount body weight & calisthenics exercises.
    Some additional resources
    Strength unbound
    convict conditioning
    Al Kavadlo
  • Nekrachael
    Nekrachael Posts: 74 Member
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    We have been doing the "You Are Your Own Gym" thing for about 13 weeks, and my husband and I are both amazed. We did not "have" to buy any equipment, because there are work around for every exercise that involve stuff in your house. The app was like $5 and its pretty amazing, but more useful if you read the approx. $20 book.

    We did choose to buy pullup bars because of many quirks in our very funky house (like crappy doors that you should NOT use as gym equipment).

    I also like the very boring, completely non-glitzy message- "Stay consistent!"

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